Rutger Bruining
Founder and CEO
Rutger graduated with a degree in Business Economics from the University of Amsterdam and in 2004 started working as a strategy consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton. Three years later he moved to New York for an MBA at Columbia University, after which he became Investment Director at Arle Capital (formerly Candover) in London. In 2013 he quit his job in private equity to focus on his love for history and stories: he founded Story Terrace. Rutger likes sports and travelling; on the top of his wish list are Australia and Uganda.
Ari Davine
North America Senior Account Executive
Ari began his career at United Talent Agency, where he spent 4 years in the Television Literary division. There, he interacted extensively with television writers and with studios and networks on behalf of the writers represented by the agency. He would then work in development for two television production companies, one of which was Ryan Seacrest Productions. He would again work very closely with television writers, only this time on the project development side. Outside of work, Ari enjoys spending time with his wife, Jennifer, and their baby girl, Maggie.
Jordan McCray
North America Account Executive
Jordan is a Texas transplant, by way of Wisconsin, Oregon, and New York. She received her BA in Sociology and Women & Gender Studies from Rice University, before ultimately landing in Los Angeles, where she began her career at Creative Artists Agency. There, Jordan worked with talented screenwriters in the Television Literary division before her promotion and transition into the Books and Publishing division, where she had the opportunity to advocate for authors and journalists. In her spare time, Jordan enjoys pottery, running, and taking road trips.
Nick Belcher
North America Account Executive
Nick started his career in music, as both an artist and the head of artist development for the independent label Known Strangers. Whether it was writing, performing, developing his own projects, or teaching other artists to do the same, music has always been apart of his life. Nick has performed on the TV show American Juniors, as a Radio Disney Pop Star, was part of the second graduating class of USC’s Popular Music Program, organized a music festival, performed at the Whiskey A Go Go, and is currently part of the first cohort of USC’s new Contemporary Teaching Practices Masters Program. Outside of work, Nick enjoys listening, writing, and singing ’70s and ’80s rock, spending time with his friends, family, and girlfriend.
Natalie Rose
North America Managing Editor
Natalie grew up in the desert but moved to New York City as soon as she was able. She spent most of her twenties producing films and commercials and using her savings to travel the world. She ended up in Guatemala, where she began writing about the foods, people, and cultures she encountered on her travels. She returned to the States in 2014 to pursue writing. Natalie studied storytelling at the Salt Institute in Portland, Maine, and holds an MFA in creative writing from Northern Arizona University. She lives with her husband and daughter, and is an aspiring Spanish-speaker and salsa maker.
Sam Brockschmidt
North America Senior Project Editor
Sam is an MG/YA novelist and screenwriter, and proud editor for Story Terrace! Inevitably, being born in Los Angeles with a love for books and film drew her to storytelling. She’s been mentored by Disney, Hallmark, and Sony Pictures, later obtaining her BA in Communications and Marketing from CSUN, and also produced events and content for the nonprofit sector (mental health and childhood cancer research). Storytelling is at her core. When Sam’s not writing books (or editing two or three), she loves researching etymology and twisted folklore, finding new podcasts, and studying Japanese. Her recipe to “unwind”? A great book, baking, yoga, and hockey!
Elizabeth DiPietro
North America Project Editor
Born and raised in South Jersey, Elizabeth relocated to Los Angeles to follow a love of storytelling. She earned her B.A. in Public Relations and her M.A. in Writing from Rowan University. She has previously worked as a Project Editor, a Staff Writer, and an Associate Editor at different publishers and publications. When not working, Elizabeth trains Muay Thai, works on her own writing, watches movies, and spends quality time with her fourteen-year-old dog Toby.
Christopher Armstrong
North America Project Editor
Born, raised, and educated in the South, Christopher Andrew Armstrong bought a one-way plane ticket to Los Angeles only a few weeks after graduating with a B.A. in English: Creative Writing at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. His freelance writing career includes credits writing about music, fashion, art, celebrity profiles and ghostwriting – which is how he came into contact with Story Terrace. After two years spent freelancing with the company, he joined the team full-time in January 2020 as a Project Editor. When not working, Christopher enjoys playing with his Siamese cat Buddha and working on his personal writing pursuits.
Levi Jelks
North America Project Editor
A theatre lover from Atlanta, Levi has always had a passion for creating stories for the screen and stage. After receiving his BA in English, he discovered his love for writing plays, which eventually led him to various internships with prominent Atlanta theatres, including The Alliance Theatre as their Literary Intern. After being accepted into Carnegie Mellon University’s Dramatic Writing MFA program, he was given the storytelling tools he needed to eventually move and settle in Los Angeles, right in the heart of Hollywood. An avid comic book nerd and film enthusiast, he spends his days listening to Twilight Zone podcasts, reading James Baldwin essays and continuing to write and edit scripts.
Giles Schippers
CMO
Marketing Expert & Creative Director with 10 years agency and client-side background plus 5 years startup and UX/product experience. I have an eye for design and connect strategic dots – build great teams, develop and launch products and brands. The first half of my career was creative and included writing for a national newspaper, radio producer, photographer and agency art director at BBDO. As I was curious about the bigger picture and strategy I did an MBA and moved into marketing roles for e.g. Getty Images and at Rem Koolhaas’ OMA. Being entrepreneurial I started developing digital products for clients and co-founded ecommerce startup SonicEditions.com.
Theo Brainin
Marketing Director
Theo’s primary responsibilities at Story Terrace include beard topiary and coffee bean adjudication. On the side, he lends a strategic and articulate perspective to Story Terrace’s product development, product marketing and design, contributing a journalistic nous gained working with broadcasters including BBC Newsnight, as well as print publications. Theo holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and a Masters degree in Political Theory, both from Oxford University; as well as a Graduate Diploma in Law.
Coen Borgman
NL Managing Editor
Coen Borgman studied Dutch Language & Culture in Amsterdam, did an internship in Pune, India and has worked TenPages.com, Boekblad, and WPG Uitgevers. He also founded a publishing house in 2013, which he transferred to Gibbon and was a publisher at Fosfor. At Story Terrace he directs the Dutch-speaking writers from London and supervises the editing and production of our books.
Rogier de Bree
NL Sales & Customer Relations Manager
With a lifelong passion for telling stories, Rogier heads up our Dutch sales team from Amsterdam
Louise Summerling
UK Managing Editor
After graduating in 2010 with a degree in English Literature from the University of East Anglia, Louise spent a couple of years in New Zealand – where she lived in a van in someone’s garden – and Australia, returning home in 2013 via Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and southern China. This was followed by a stint working at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation clinic, which is where her love of people and their stories was born. She then spent a year getting lost among the dreaming spires while working at Oxford University Press, before arriving in London to develop her skills as an editor at Macmillan. She joined Story Terrace in 2017, where she works closely with customers and writers to bring people’s stories to life.
Beth Williams
UK Project Editor
Beth graduated with a degree in English and American Literature from the University of Sussex, and studied abroad at the University of Washington, Seattle. After graduating she moved to Berlin where she worked as an Editorial Intern at various arts and culture magazines in the city. A year later she returned to London to work at Bloomsbury as a Production Assistant before being promoted to Production Editor, where she managed a busy list of academic titles. She joined Story Terrace in 2018 and loves to help customers turn their life stories into beautiful books.
Moseley Labor
UK Sales Manager
With 8 years of sales experience across media, retail and healthcare industries Moseley has a passion for providing a high level of service and building lasting relationships with clients. Moseley also has a passion for sports – he’s currently undertaking a Master’s in sports law. Other interests include travelling, technology and cooking.
